Ready to Start Coding

It’s been a week since I announced that I was going to write an iPhone app. I’m still excited about it, even though someone told me that Medtronic is working on their own version of the same thing I proposed — a working prototype, she said. Well, I for one am glad that they seem some value in having a mobile app, but I plan to keep working on mine. Competition is good. We’ll see who can get their app out there first: the newbie picking up iPhone development skills or the large medical company who is going through FDA approval.

Since last Saturday I’ve learned a lot. I’ve picked up the syntax of Objective-C, which is causing this C++ programmer to “think differently.” I like what I’ve seen from it so far, but we’ll see what I think after building something real. I’ve made a couple “Hello, World!” applications, just enough to get a few basic skills using Xcode and Interface Builder.

Now the hard work begins.

I’ve made a list of requirements for the first couple of (internal) versions of the app; so I know what needs I plan to satisfy. I’ve picked an external library to plot the CGM data. And I’ve started working on the functional design, sketching a few different views that people will use to interact with their data. (I usually hate graphical user interface design, but something about the UIKit components seem to be amplifying my scanty abilities with interaction design.) I still have to figure out the data model — that is to say, the architecture — but I think that should follow from the views I create, which of course is supposed to visualize items in the pump/CGM data model.

Pigeonholed…

Medical disclaimer…

I am not a doctor and do not have any medical training. Your diabetes may vary. You should always check with your health care team before making any changes to your diabetes self-management or exercise regimen.